Nrpg: I couldn't get my sever to accept this addy....so could someone bounce
it to her and check it for me please?

Barb                        Shana Brosh  <brosh@matnet.com>
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Sazarnth woke up with a start.

<What a nightmare!  Those creatures . . . ouch!  Must not have 
been a nightmare, I guess.>

<<Sazarnth?  You okay?>> Ghost asked, glad to have her friend 
back. It had felt kind of strange after getting used to having 
the dragon's touch in her mind, to suddenly not feel it there 
anymore. 'Sort of like how it must feel to a rider who's lost 
their dragon,' she surmised. 'I'm glad I had Kike so the loss 
didn't hit me so hard.' 

<* You will always have me, my human. *> the little pink 
hatchling warm thoughts entered her mind.

<Nice to hear from you again.  How long have I been out?>

<<Away from the Warren?  Two weeks.  Sleeping?  24 hours.  You 
were dreaming so deeply, a wraith touch couldn't wake you up.>> 
'And you could have let me know when you got back.' she thought 
to herself very quietly.

<So nice to be missed.>  Sazarnth added wryly.

<<I missed you.>> She let the lavender dragon feel what she was 
feeling, then was about to say something else when she happened 
to look up and see a purple dragon flying high above her. << Hey, 
what's that?>>

<What?>

<<It's a purple dragon.  Kinda reminds me of you, Saz.>> she 
commented as she covered her eyes and followed the path of the 
flight bound beast.

 <Purple?  Can you see her wings?>

<<Of course not!>> Ghost frowned.  << I'm not long-sighted like 
dragons.>> 

 <I'll meet you out in the open Warren.  I think I know who that 
is.>

Kikeane head picked up when she heard the exchange. She was 
interested in finally meeting the older dragon who had befriended 
her human. So far she had only had mind touches with her during 
the time the lavender had been gone.  Something the pink hadn't 
told her rider because Sazarnth had asked her not to. Kike had 
thought this silly at the time until Saz had explained that if 
something did happen to her and she wasn't able to come back to 
Ghost, then it would be easier on the girl and she wouldn't feel 
the loss so bad. That made sense to the little hatchling, so she 
kept quiet.

<*I'm going to go with you, *> the little one informed her new 
rider when Ghost got up to leave. <* I want to see her too, if 
we're to share you. *>

<Bazarnath!  Stop this reckless flight and COME HERE!>

Ghost couldn't help but laugh as she listened to the exchange 
between Saz and her ... daughter?... Oh how it reminded her of 
someone here in the Warren. The tailor Winthona and her daughters, 
Whina and Thina. It sent her to giggling as she made her way with 
Kike out to the open green to meet up with the other two.

*<Mother?>*

<Yes!  Come here this INSTANT!>

Ghost wanted to run to the older dragon when she saw her land just 
ahead of her, but she kept at a slower pace so as not to leave the 
little pink behind. Her main duty and love was for her little life 
mate. Theirs was a bond stronger and deeper than any the girl had 
ever shared before and she wouldn't do anything to weaken it. 

 Bazie slowed down to a leisurely glide and the violet streak 
became a dragon with silver streaked wings.

<Now.  I'd like you to meet a friend of mine.>

 The dragons fell from the cave to a slow spiral and alighted in 
a shady area where Bashie waited.

<<Like mother like daughter, eh?>> Ghost couldn't help but laugh. 

<Spare me your humor please.> And to Bazie she thought, 
<Bazarnath, what did you think you were doing?  They might have 
killed you!  You're a feral dragon flying over a Warren!  How 
unintelligent can a dragon get.  Especially one of MY children!>

*<Umm, well, sorry Sazarnth.  The morning was fine and . . .>*    

<Just forget it.  Glad you're here.  Will you be staying?>

<<Would someone PLEASE include me in the conversation here?!?>> 
This was maddening. Here she was standing there and they were 
talking around her as if they had forgotten she was there. And 
to top it all off, Saz had asked her to come.

<I was just asking her to stay.>

<<Oh.>> The girl said in surprise. It was funny... Well not really, 
but she could *hear* Bazarnath. Was that because she was Sazarnth's
daughter?  In the back of her mind she was wondering if this now 
meant she was to have three dragons to look after. Three dragon 
to oil.... she'd never have any time for herself...

 *<Sure, I guess.>*

Sazarnth stood on her haunches an bulged a four note arpeggio in a
surprisingly clear alto that carried well into every chamber in the 
Warren and was answered by a soprano scale, both in perfect harmony.

Ghost didn't know what to say... or do for the matter. It was all
beyond her. Three dragons...

<Don't worry little one... Bazarnath is not for you.> Saz's thought  
seemed to laugh in her mind. <I will make sure she behaves herself 
while she is here, but she is well able to take care of herself.>

<<But who will oil her when she needs it?>> the girl asked. 

<She will find a way,> the lavender sent back. <This daughter of 
mine always does. Now I think the little one is hungry. You should 
go feed her. We will talk later.> 

Ghost was about to ask another question, when suddenly the two 
older dragons lift up from the green and flew off towards 
Sazarnth's cave. Kike nudged her from behind reminding her that 
she had been very patient about waiting while she talked to the 
mentor one... but could she please eat now?

<<Oh I'm so sorry Kike,>> the girl suddenly felt horrible, 
undeserving of the tiny pink hatchling who had chosen her. <<I 
promise I won't do that to you again. Let's go get you something 
right now, and then I'll give you an extra special oiling to make 
up for you being so kind and waiting.>>

<That sounds nice,> Kikeane seemed to smile. <Can we do that 
before we have to report for training?>

That stopped Ghost in her tracks. Training?? She'd forgotten all 
about that. <<Well we can get you something to eat now and just 
about make it to the training... I don't think it was 
canceled...>> She suddenly remembered her friend and mentor. 
Phaedra!! And suddenly didn't feel like going to training. She 
would feed Kike and then head over to the med center and see if 
she could find out anything.  

No one had told the newly joined anything. But they all knew from 
their dragon's that the Warrenlady had been missing and finally 
located with the help of Inagua and her little queen Myacura. That 
and what those who'd been in the hall had come back to tell them. 
None of them could tell her anything about the Warrenlady's 
condition when they had brought her back, except that she was alive. 
Ghost needed to know more.

The Warrenlady just had to be all right!! If anything happened to 
her, Ghost didn't know what she would do. The woman was more than 
a friend to the girl. She had been her protector and almost the 
closes thing to a mother Ghost had had since she had fled from... 

Phaedra just had to be all right.

Using the back entrance to the med center, Ghost had no problem 
gaining admittance. She knew every nook and cranny of the place 
so she could hide quickly if anyone was coming. Silently she made 
her way from room to room until she found the one that the 
Warrenlady had been brought to. 

When she heard voices coming from the room getting louder as they 
drew near the door, she ducked into the room across the hallway 
praying it was empty, and waited until the healer, H'nin and 
C'rin, (who she could see through a crack in the door) left the 
room and wondered down the hall. Only then did she open the door 
just enough to get a good look up and down the hall way to make 
sure the coast was clear. Seconds later she was standing next to 
the bed where Phaedra laid sleeping.

A tear slid from her eye, followed quickly by another. 

"Please be all right," she whispered to the woman on the bed. "I 
still need you. The Warren needs you. But I don't know what I'd do 
without you. You've always been there for me, sticking up for me 
and such. Even when you found out the truth about me, you tried to 
help me. I need you more than ever now that I have two dragon's of 
my own to take care of. I don't know what to do."

She reached out with her hand to smooth back a lock of Phaedra's 
hair. Not that it needed it, but she needed to touch the woman in 
some way.
 
"Ghost... how did you get in here?" 

The girl turned quickly, so intent on the Warrenlady, she hadn't 
even heard the door being opened or heard C'rin enter. 

"Never mind," he said kindly. "I'd forgotten for the moment this 
way you have about you. But you shouldn't be in here."

"I know," she said softly, turning her head back to look at the 
woman on the bed. "But no one would tell me anything and I ..."

"...Was worried about her," he finished for her when she didn't go 
on. "We all are, but as you can see for yourself, small fry. She's 
going to be all right."

She turned her head again, this time meeting his concerned eyes. 
"She has to be." She went to him then when he opened his arms. 
Needing the comfort that he was offering. Ghost didn't see the 
somewhat shocked expression that crossed his handsome face when 
his arms closed around her. She'd never let anyone besides Phaedra 
close to her before. So he knew she was really hurting and cared 
about the Warrenlady's safety.

"Come on little one," he said softly. "We need to leave her to 
rest, later you can come back. I'll see to it. Okay?" He pulled 
back enough for her to see his eyes. To know he was speaking the 
truth.

"Okay," she agreed and took one more look back before allowing 
him to lead her from the room.

"I need to go oil Kike," she said absently. "I promised her a 
special oiling cause she waited this morning to be fed when 
Sazarnth came back."

"So the other one decided to show back up huh?" he gave a short 
laugh. "Well it's about time I start showing you how to take care 
of the two of them. Come on... we got a training to go to."

-----------------------------------------

Nrpg: I don't know if it's training for all the newly joined... or 
if he's going to just show Ghost a few things...

At the time...

****Submitted by: *****

Barbara (a.k.a.

Ghost & Kikeane 
With their mentor, Sazarnth
Geode Warren